Maternity abdominal cushion



2 1966 o. T. ELLSWORTH MATERNITY ABDOMINAL CUSHION Filed April 19, 1965IVVENTOR. FIG. 5 02m; Z'L'lwwaer ArraQ/vm United States Patent 3,287,747MATERNITY ABDOMINAL CUSHION Orval T. Ellsworth, Berkeley, Calif. (10317Cherry Tree Lane, Silver Spring, Md.) Filed Apr. 19, 1965, Ser. No.448,931 4 Claims. (Cl. 5-338) This invention relates to a maternityabdominal cushion whereby a pregnant woman is permitted to lie pronewithout discomfort to the mother. During normal pregnancy a womansabdomen will enlarge considerably, and from about the sixth month ofpregnancy to final delivery the woman experiences pain and generaldiscomfort caused by the increasing load on muscles and joints. Manywomen hesitate to lie prone for fear of injury to the unborn child.Lying on her back becomes tiresome, due to the constant weight of thechild in one 3,287,747 Patented Nov. 29, 1966 which is preferably moldedfrom a soft resilient plastic foam, such as polyurethane, for example.The main body or block 1 is preferably elliptical in plan contour andthe ends 2-3 are tapered to a blunt point, so that direction and on aparticular set of muscles and joints.

In the prone position the human trunk is normal-1y supported by the ribsand the breast bone at the chest end, and by the hip bones at the pelvicend. The abdomen is suspended from the lumber spine between the chestand the pelvis. In pregnancy the abdomen eventually protrudes to theextent that the abdomen, rather than the chest and the pelvis, issupporting the trunk. At this point lying in the prone position is nolonger feasible for the pregnant woman.

My invention relates to a particularly shaped and constructed cushionupon which the pregnant woman can lie in the prone position; the cushionbeing so arranged that weight of the trunk is still supported from thebreast bone at the chest end and by the hip bones at the pelvic end.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel abdominal cushion,the ends of which are tapered or somewhat pointed to support the thoraxat one end and the pelvis at the other, and with a concavity formed inthe center of the cushion to support the abdomen.

Still another object of my invention to to provide an abdominal cushionin which there is a longitudinally extending slit extending through thebottom of the cushion, whereby the cushion is allowed to expandlaterally to fit women of various body types, and also to accommodatethe expanding abdomen at different stages of pregnancy.

Still anither object of my invention is to provide a novel abdominalcushion of the character stated, which is simple in construction,inexpensive to manufacture, and which can be easily and effectively usedby a pregnant woman.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention may appear from theaccompanying drawing, the sub joined detailed description and appendedclaims.

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of my maternity abdominal cushion.

FIGURE 2 is a top plan view of the same.

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4--4 of FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 5 is a side elevation of my abdominal cushion illustrating itsposition during use.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, the numeral 1 indicates themain body of my abdominal cushion,

this portion of the cushion will engage the sternum 4 at the forwardend, and the pelvis 5 at the other end. This positioning is shown inFIGURE 5. The particular shape of the cushion thus permits it to becomfortably employed during the prone position. A semiellipsoidalconcavity 6 or recess is formed in the block or base portion 1 and isless than the length, width, and depth of the block or base 1. Thusthere is a continuous rim 7 extending entirely around the concavity 6.The concavity 6 thus is particularly shaped and specifically adapted tothe anatomy of the pregnant woman. A slot or opening 8 extends throughthe bottom of the block 1 and particularly through the concavity 6, andthis slot is less than the length of the block 1 so that the slot doesnot cut the block into two complementary parts. The slot is sufficicntlylong, however, so that the block 1 can expand laterally as required bythe continuing pregnancy of the woman, and the block will require somemanual adjustment, but weight of the pregnant woman upon the cushion issufiicient to extend it somewhat and cause the cushion to conform to therequired abdominal shape.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A maternity abdominal cushion comprising,

a body formed of a resilient material and the length of said body beinggreater than the width,

said body having a concavity therein to accommodate the abdomen therein,

said concavity having dimensions less than the width,

the length, and the depth of said body,

said body having a slot in the bottom thereof and extending for lessthan the length of the body.

2. A maternity abdominal cushion comprising,

a body formed of a resilient material and the length of said body beinggreater than the width and substantially elliptical in plan contour,

said body having a hemi-ellipsoidal concavity therein to accommodate theabdomen therein,

said concavity having dimensions less than the width,

the length, and the depth of said body,

said body having a slot in the bottom thereof and extending for lessthan the length of the body.

3. A maternity abdominal cushion comprising,

a body formed of a resilient material and the length of said body beinggreater than the width, the length of said body being such that itextends from the sternum to the pelvis of the user,

said body having a hemi-ellipsoidal concavity therein to accommodate theabdomen therein,

said concavity having dimensions less than the width,

the length, and the depth of said body,

said body having a slot in the bottom thereof extending the length ofsaid concavity and less than the length of the body.

4. A maternity abdominal cushion comprising,

a body formed of a resilient material and the length of said body beinggreater than its width,

said body extending from the breast bone at the chest of the user to thehip bones at the pelvis end of the user,

4 a said body having a concavity therein to accommodate References Citedby the Applicant the o UNITED STATES PATENTS said concavity havingdimensions less than the width, 1,107,683 8/1914 Ma1arkey the length,and the depth of said body. 5 2,046,645 7 1936 Mason 2,562,725 7/1951Leto et 21. References Cited by the Examiner 2,651,788 9/ 1953 Forwood.UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,765,480 10/ 1956 Mueller. 2,107,962 2/1938Sheasby FRANCIS K. ZUGEL, Acting Primary Examiner. 2,688,142 9/1954Jensen 5-338 10 FRANK SHERRY. xa e 3,118,152 1/ 1964 Talley A. M.CALVERT, Assistant Examiner.

